SIG Shoots High, have questions

123

Receintly bought a German SIG P226, Metro night sights both size 8. Shoots 5-6 inches high at 25yds., 115 gr . Have tried differnt ammo brands, same issue.
Not sure why its having this issue but guess the only thing to do is change the sights. Probably will have standard sights installed. What number do I need, do need to replace bothe front and back or just one or the other?
Thanks guys

Shooting heavier ammo will place the rounds higher as the velocity is lower and the bullets will leave the barrel with slightly more barrel rise, sometimes the factory will zero the sights for a different point of aim then your using.They may have done a six O'clock hold whereas you may be doing a center hold.
My suggestion would be to use the 6 o'clock hold first before switching the sights

I'd also get someone else to shoot it before you do anything to the sights. I thought for sure that my own sights needed adjustment until I did an exercise in a class just recently where I held the gun and the instructor pulled the trigger. I was shooting down and to the left, and the instructor was shooting dead straight. Turns out it was my grip (I was using my strong arm to both hold on to the gun and fire, which is apparently a no-no).

Before using the diagnostic bullseye diagram above, you need to stop shooting off hand and shoot from a benchrest. THAT is the only way you will best determine if it is the hardware (gun) or the software (shooter) that needs any adjusting.

SiG factory sights are the dot (front sight) and post (rear sight) style where a single verticle line is painted below the window notch in the rear sight. UNLESS you have been told or trained on how to properly allign this configuration of sights, you WILL be off the mark.

Traditionally SiG has gone with the philosophy that one superimposes the dot on the POI, so using the standard OEM sights on a SiG - one has to "dot the I" [see Image 3 below]. Conversely, the traditional training for 1911's is the "six o'clock low" hold on the sights [see Image 1 below]. Completely different philosophy and if this is the only training you have, you will be WAY off when shooting a SiG.

One thing to keep in mind is that 3 dot sights have some inherant liabilities when one employs them. Ensuring the tops of the front and rear sights are flat and alligned as illustrated best in Image 2 being foremost. Thus I recommend you use a rest as shooting off hand add way too many variables in this particular diagnostic endeavor. Minimizing the variabilities will most efficiently get you to the core issue, whether that is sight size, sight allignment (boresighted or windage adjusted) or your sight picture and hold.

In 9mm and .357 SIG, nearly all SiG's come out of the factory with size #8 Meprolights front and back. There are sometimes a few anomolies during the production run that will require a different height be installed for proper boresighting. Meprolight is also the current vendor for SiG's OEM Night Sights, used to be trijicon but the change was made several years ago. In .40 and .45 most leave the factory with #6 sights front and back.

Eliminate as many variables as you can and fire a few 5 shot groups. If you can, have someone else do the same. you will not be exercising many marksmanship skills with the exception of trigger squeeze so don't get all hung up on your elbows being bent, locking your wrist, sticking your tongue out while you shoot or anything else. Think machine - mechanical repetition of movement that is duplicated exactly every time.

You should find out relatively quickly where the problem lies. Report back and go from there. If you do have to swap sights, fronts and backs aren't sold seperately so you'll be buying a set (1 of each). There are vendors that have mix and match sized sets (ie. #6 front and a #8 rear) but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

If it continues to shoot high even when changing the load your using and while other people shoot it, you can call Sig and see if they will fix it or try a #6 rear sight if you want to get it to hit to your point of aim. How are your groups coming out, are they tight or somewhat dispersed?

I had a Sig 220 that would shoot like a bat out of hell, then I sold it. Later down the road I bought a 226 and it didn't shoot quite as well, I traded it for a 229 in 40 with a 357 Sig barrel and it shoots good. My Springfield XDM will shoot a lot better than both did so its my main carry gun now.
That was shot at 10 yards, not to shabby for right out of the box.

Before using the diagnostic bullseye diagram above, you need to stop shooting off hand and shoot from a benchrest. THAT is the only way you will best determine if it is the hardware (gun) or the software (shooter) that needs any adjusting.

SiG factory sights are the dot (front sight) and post (rear sight) style where a single verticle line is painted below the window notch in the rear sight. UNLESS you have been told or trained on how to properly allign this configuration of sights, you WILL be off the mark.

Traditionally SiG has gone with the philosophy that one superimposes the dot on the POI, so using the standard OEM sights on a SiG - one has to "dot the I" [see Image 3 below]. Conversely, the traditional training for 1911's is the "six o'clock low" hold on the sights [see Image 1 below]. Completely different philosophy and if this is the only training you have, you will be WAY off when shooting a SiG.

One thing to keep in mind is that 3 dot sights have some inherant liabilities when one employs them. Ensuring the tops of the front and rear sights are flat and alligned as illustrated best in Image 2 being foremost. Thus I recommend you use a rest as shooting off hand add way too many variables in this particular diagnostic endeavor. Minimizing the variabilities will most efficiently get you to the core issue, whether that is sight size, sight allignment (boresighted or windage adjusted) or your sight picture and hold.

In 9mm and .357 SIG, nearly all SiG's come out of the factory with size #8 Meprolights front and back. There are sometimes a few anomolies during the production run that will require a different height be installed for proper boresighting. Meprolight is also the current vendor for SiG's OEM Night Sights, used to be trijicon but the change was made several years ago. In .40 and .45 most leave the factory with #6 sights front and back.

Eliminate as many variables as you can and fire a few 5 shot groups. If you can, have someone else do the same. you will not be exercising many marksmanship skills with the exception of trigger squeeze so don't get all hung up on your elbows being bent, locking your wrist, sticking your tongue out while you shoot or anything else. Think machine - mechanical repetition of movement that is duplicated exactly every time.

You should find out relatively quickly where the problem lies. Report back and go from there. If you do have to swap sights, fronts and backs aren't sold seperately so you'll be buying a set (1 of each). There are vendors that have mix and match sized sets (ie. #6 front and a #8 rear) but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

I do not like to break the shot without being able to see the target, ala Image 3 style and as Sig stock sights seem to require.
For me, Image 2 is what I like and consequently I am adding a TFO front Sight in Size 8 to my P226 40 cal, to match the stock Rear sight which is Size 8 also.
Currently, if I try to use sight picture as in Image 2, my POI is 2-3 inches LOW at 10 yards.
Ken

Shooting heavier ammo will place the rounds higher as the velocity is lower and the bullets will leave the barrel with slightly more barrel rise, sometimes the factory will zero the sights for a different point of aim then your using.They may have done a six O'clock hold whereas you may be doing a center hold.
My suggestion would be to use the 6 o'clock hold first before switching the sights

The 6 o'clock hold is the only hold I use and it is the only hold I was ever taught to use. In high school I was on the rifle team (1963 - 1966) and that was the hold we used on rifles too.

I asked my department's range master about this.. His answer was that Sig's sit higher in your hand, as opposed to Glocks, Xd's and other handguns with a lower profile. So I took my 226 out and put it next to a Glock and he is right... The sight's sit higher then most. I don't know if this is the case here but it's an idea..